FREE Open Studio with Jayda Karsten at KOAC

This event offers an accessible opportunity to learn more about Jayda Karsten’s interdisciplinary practice, see works in progress, explore material-based processes, and engage in conversation around site-specific installation, public participation, and the re-imagining of found materials.

During her residency at KOAC, Karsten is exploring the theme of vessels through sculptural, three-dimensional works made from repurposed venetian blinds. These vessel-like forms may interact with people, light, and wind in unexpected ways, and draw inspiration from patterns and structures found in nature or within the KOAC sculpture park. For Karsten, vessels can be functional or suggestive forms that question intention and use—asking whether a vessel is defined by its form, or by what it holds.

Karsten’s work is also currently included in the group exhibition Naturally Occurring at the Pumphouse Theatre’s Quenten Doolittle Memorial Gallery (January 30 – April 4, 2026).

Sunday, February 22, 2026
Doors open at 2:00 PM
Mingling and conversational Q&A until 4:00 PM

Kiyooka Ohe Arts Centre
244034 Horizon View Road
Calgary, AB T3Z 3M5

Admission: Free (donations to KOAC are welcome)
Light snacks and refreshments will be provided.

Jayda Karsten is an interdisciplinary artist, curator, and architectural technologist whose practice explores spaces in the built environment that exist in states of flux. Drawn to the intersections of Fine Art and Architecture, her work examines relationships between people, materials, and place through approaches such as wayfinding, psychogeography, relational aesthetics, and autoethnography.

Her practice centers on re-purposing, re-using, and re-imagining found materials to create immersive, site-specific installations. Previous works include Public Art II, a participatory installation created through public weaving, and Sign Poetry, an ongoing series that reworks traffic signs into reflective prompts encouraging awareness and re-connection with the natural environment.

Artist headshot photo courtesy of the artist.
Learn more about KOAC: koartscentre.org

Studio Access & Accessibility: The residency studio is a short walk from the main parking lot along a plowed gravel path, which may be uneven or icy in winter conditions. Winter footwear is recommended. The studio entrance is at ground level with no stairs. For accessibility questions or assistance, please contact

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